Swim suit and brassiere structure, particularly for swim suits



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.Jan. 25, 1955 B. J. SCHOLFIELD SWIM SUIT AND BRASSIERE STRUCTURE, PARTICULARLY FOR SWIM SUITS Fi'led Sept. 5, 1950 Jan. 25, 1955 B. J. SCHOLFIELD 2,700,160

- SWIM SUIT AND BRASSIERE STRUCTURE, PARTICULARLY FQR SWIM SUITS Filed Sept. 5, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ball? jm/zja/wm ATTORN EYS SWIM SUIT AND BRASSIERE STRUCTURE, PAR- TICULARLY FOR SWIM SUITS Bette Jean Scholfield, Portland, reg., assignor to Jantzen Inc, Portland, 0reg., a corporation of Nevada Application September 5, 1950, Serial No. 183,159 3 Claims. (Cl. 2-67) United States Patent 0 2,700,160 Patented Jan. 25, 1955 level with the crotch of the wearer. The back of the swim suit may be made in two portions 17 and 18 joined to the front panel 10 along side seams 16 and joined together by a central, backbone-following seam of which at least the upper portion is adapted to be separably fastened together by slide fastener elements 19 and a slide 20. It is to be appreciated that other types of lower or torso covering portions of the garment may be combined with the upper or bust-enclosing portion of the garment without departing from my invention in certain of its aspects, as will be apparent hereafter.

The upper portion of the front of the garment comprises a pair of breast cups 22, the lower edges of which are defined by the curves 11 along which the panel 10 is marginally attached. The outer edges of each of the breast cups are defined by the side seams 16. The upper edges of the breast cups are preferably upwardly convex and defined by turned hems, with the upper edge of the garment having a V-shaped line between the breast cups. Each of the breast cups is preferably formed of self material arranged so as to have lateral stretch, and each is sion that a small bust is larger than it actually is, or approaching the normal, while the same suit may be worn by a person of normal or larger than normal configuration without increasing the apparent size of the bust. The principal object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide a swim suit inherently capable of creating the illusion that most wearers conform to the conception of the perfect feminine figure.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a swim suit including a brassiere portion in which each breast cup is provided with a strip of boning extending in a generally vertical direction through the apex of the breast cup, in which the use of boning is absolutely camouflaged so that the observer is unable to detect the presence of boning. This object of the present invention is wearer causes the presence of boning to be objectionable to many wearers even where the need therefor is present.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a swim suit brassiere of relatively simple construction capable of achieving the foregoing objects.

A distinguishing feature of the present invention, aiding in fulfilling the foregoing objects, lies in the use of boning secured to the outer fabric of the swim suit rather than to the inner brassiere as has heretofore been the practice in the art.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily ascertained by inspection of the following specification taken in connection with the accompanying drawing wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, while the features of novelty will be more distinctly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing, Fig. 1 is a view of the garment when laid out fiat on a supporting surface;

Fig. 2 is a front view of the swim suit when in use;

Fig. 3 is a partial rear view of the garment when in use, with the back partially opened to illustrate details of the lining brassiere;

Fig. 4 is a partial side view of the garment when in use;

Fig. 5 is a somewhat schematic, horizontal cross-section through the brassiere portion of the garment when In use;

Fig. 6 is a similar vertical section through the brassiere portion of the garment when in use; and

Fig. 7 is a partial interior view of the brassiere portion of the garment.

The present invention is shown incorporated in a swim suit comprising a body-enclosing outer garment including a torso covering portion and a trunk portion, in which the front of the garment comprises a panel 10 extending substantially from side to side and terminating at its upper edge in a spaced pair of upwardly concave curves 11 defining the lower edges of breast receiving cups. The panel 10 preferably extends to a lower,

horizontal edge 12 which, when in use, is substantially highly desirable since the natural pride of the w formed of a generally oval panel with the material being shirred throughout in a lateral direction. The shirring is so arranged as to form relatively deep folds which fall along the natural inclination thereof both inwardly and outwardly so as to define irregular, laterally extending creases and ridges. The material is tightly gathered by a spaced pair of parallel lines of stitches forming the side shirring seam 23. Along the apex of the breast cup the material is most loosely shirred by a spaced pair of parallel, vertical lines of stitching defining a central shirring seam 24. The inner, vertical edge of each breast cup is defined by a spaced pair of parallel lines of stitches defining tightly gathered, central shirring seams 25. The material is bunched or shirred to about the same extent along the seams 25 as it is along the seams 23. Between the seams 23 and 24 the material is shirred along a spaced pair of parallel lines of stitching to define intermediate shirring seams 26, and similar intermediate shirring seams 27 are provided between the seams 24 and 25. The seams 26 and 27 generally extend in a vertical direction midway between the seams 23 and 24 and between the seams 24 and 25 respectively, and the material is gathered thereat somewhat to an intermediate extent. The arrangement of seams is such as to define generally contour-following, upright lines when the garment is in use, thus again disposing vertical lines tending to diminish the apparent size of larger than normal busts and counteracting against the enlarging etfect of the horizontal lines created by the deep shirring.

The bust portion of the garment comprises a brassiere having some features in common with the construction disclosed and claimed in my copending application, Serial No. 128,612, filed November 21, 1949, now Patent No. 2,613,357, issued October 14, 1952, in that the brassiere comprises an inner liner and an elastic bandalong its lower edge. In the present invention the brassiere is secured to the upper edge of the swim suit and includes a pair of breast portions lying within the breast cups. The brassire is so arranged as to impart uplift and firmly to engage the breasts of the wearer independently of the .outer breast cups. Preferably the brassire comprises a plurality of panels of material stretchable in one direction only with the panels cut to provide breastsupporting action. Each breast portion comprises an outer panel 30 terminating in an outer, vertical side seam 31 underlying the side seam 16 and a central, vertical seam 32 generally through the apex of the breast portion. This panel is arranged with the stretch of the material in the vertical direction. The inner side of each breast portion is provided by a bias-cut upper panel 33 and a bias-cut lower panel 34 joined by a generally horizontal seam 35 extending to the apex area of the breast portion. The directions of stretch of the inner panels 33 and 34 are opposite and generally parallel to the radii of the breast portion respectively bisecting the panels. The opposed pairs of panels 33 and 34 are joined together by a central, vertical seam 36. The upper edges of the panels 30 and 33 are secured within the turned-over hem of the outer garment by the hemming seam 37. The brassiere also comprises laterally stretchable side panels 38 preferably secured to the upper edge of the back panels 17 and 18 respectively throughout, and secured at their ends to the vertical back seams and the tapes securing the slide fastener elements to the garment. The lower edges of the panels 38, 3t! and 34 are secured throughout to a relatively wide, laterally stretchable elastic band 39 which completely encircles the bust and has its ends secured into the back seams and to the tapes which mount the slide fastener elements. This band is so positioned as to lie along the lower edges of the breasts and give uplifting support thereto. It is to be appreciated that the breast portions of the lining brassiere are so arranged as to snugly and firmly support normal breasts, but are readily yieldable to accommodate larger breasts with comfort. Smaller breasts will, of course, go into the liner pockets, but the fact that the breasts are small will be concealed by the folds of the lining and the lateral shirring of the outer brassiere lying across the folds of the lining. The outer brassiere material is drawn into smoothly rounded shape by contracting along its lines of lateral stretchability when covering small breasts, and both the inner liner and the outer brassiere yield comfortably to accommodate larger than normal breasts. A narrow elastic band 40 is preferably sewed into the upper hem throughout its length.

The garment is completed by a pair of strips of boning indicated at 41, the boning preferably being of the dcformable type which may be bent to give any desired contour yet, as is usual with boning, will comfortably and resiliently yield when in use. The boning is preferably secured within a casing 42 of fabric, and the spaced pair of lines of vertical stitches defining the shirring seams 24 are utilized to secure the lateral edges of the boning casing fabric 42 to the breast cups. The fabric casing 42 may be looped at the top to provide fabric loops 43 capable of receiving shoulder strap hooks in the event the garment is to be provided with such. The lower end of each strip of boning extends beyond the lower, curved edge 11 of the breast cups, and the fabric casing 42 is secured throughout the extending length of the boning crossways to the elastic band 39 by spaced lines of stitching indicated at 44. The downwardly extending portions of the boning may be shaped to rest against the chest of the wearer below the breasts and thus enhance the supporting effect of the inner brassiere. The boning is secured to the inner brassiere only in the region of the elastic band 39 and therefore may be shaped to provide a contour and breast appearance of the outer garment differing from that of the wearer.

As seen more clearly in Fig. 5, the separate lines of stitches which go to form the shirring seams comprise threads 45 which shown on the outer surface of the breast cups and shirring cords 46 which follow the seams on the inner surface of the breast cups. The cords are generally unstretchable and maintain the vertical dimensions of the breast cup; thus, if the configuration of the wearer would tend to stretch a normal brassiere in the vertical sense, the effect would be prohibited in the present garment, causing the bust appearance to remain exactly similar to that of a person with normal or smaller than normal breasts. As intended to be expressed by the cross-sectional view in Fig. 5, the shirring folds extend both inside of and outside of the general shape of the outer breast cups. Those folds which lie within may be pressed fiat when worn by a large person, but when worn by a person with small breasts the folds lie inwardly and engage the foundation provided by the inner brassiere, thus serving to maintain the outer breast cups in the generally rounded shape of feminine contour. The folds of the shirring also provide an irregular surface along the strips of boning, thus tending in another manner to conceal the use of boning.

Having illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of the invention, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention permits of modification in arrangement and detail. I claim as my invention all such modifications as come within the true spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

I. A swim suit comprising a body-enclosing outer garment including a pair of laterally elongated, generally oval breast cups, a brassiere secured within the upper portion of said outer garment and including breast portions lying within said breast cups, said breast portions and said breast cups having similar upper edges secured to each other throughout, said breast portions being otherwise free from and independent of said breast cups and the remainder of the outer garment, said breast portions each comprising a plurality of panels of material stretchable in one direction, said panels being secured together along their meeting edges and having a common meeting point underlying the apex of the adjacent breast cup, said panels comprising an outer panel stretchable in the vertical sense and forming the outer half of the breast portion, an upper, inner panel forming the upper, inner quarter of the breast portion and a lower, inner panel forming the lower, inner quarter of the breast portion, each of said inner panels being stretchable parallel to the radii of the breast portion respectively bisecting the panels, said breast cups being stretchable in the lateral direction only, and a generally upright strip of moldable boning secured to the inner surface of each of said breast cups vertically through the apex thereof.

2. A swim suit comprising a body-enclosing outer garment having an upper edge adapted to encircle the body of the wearer in the chest region, said outer garment including a pair of breast cups, the upper edges of said breast cups defining the upper edge of said swim suit at the front thereof, a brassiere secured within the upper portion of said swim suit and including breast portions lying within said breast cups, the upper edges of said breast portions defining the upper edge of said brassiere at the front thereof and the upper edges of said breast portions and said breast cups being secured to each other throughout, said breast portions being otherwise substantially free from and independent of said breast cups and the remainder of the outer garment, said breastportions each comprising a plurality of panels of material stretchable in one direction, said panels being secured together along their meeting edges and having a common meeting point underlying the apex of the adjacent breast cup, said panels comprising an outer panel stretchable in the vertical sense and forming the outer half of the breast portion, an upper, inner panel forming the upper, inner quarter of the breast portion and a lower, inner panel forming the lower, inner quarter of the breast portion, each of said inner panels being stretchable parallel to the radii of the breast portion respectively bisecting the panels, said breast cups being stretchable in the lateral direction only, and a generally upright strip of boning secured to the inner surface of each of said breast cups vertically through the apex thereof, said breast cups being formed of deeply shirred material with the shirring forming relatively deep folds running laterally across the breasts, said folds being loosely gathered in the vertical sense at the centers of the breast cups and being progressively more tightly gathered toward the sides thereof in the vertical sense in order to provide a generally oval outline for each breast cup, said shirring being secured by generally vertical lines of stitching of plainly visible effect to present vertical lines tending to counteract the visual elfect of the horizontal lines of shirring.

3. A swim suit comprising a body-enclosing outer garment having an upper edge adapted to encircle the body of the wearer in the chest region, said outer garment including a pair of breast cups, the upper edges of said breast cups defining the upper edge of said swim suit at the front thereof, a brassiere secured within the upper portion of said swim suit and including breast portions lying within said breast cups, the upper edges of said breast portions defining the upper edge of said brassiere at the front thereof and the upper edges of said breast portions and said breast cups being secured to each other throughout, said breast portions being otherwise free from said breast cups, said breast portions each comprising a plurality of panels of material stretchable in one direction, said panels being secured together along their meeting edges and having a common meeting point underlying the apex of the adjacent breast cup, said panels comprising an outer panel stretchable in the vertical sense and forming the outer half of the breast portion, an upper, inner panel forming the upper, inner quarter of the breast portion and a lower, inner panel forming the lower, inner quarter of the breast portion, each of said inner panels being stretchable parallel to the radii of the breast portion respectively bisecting the panels, said breast cups being stretchable in the lateral direction only, a generally upright, moldable strip of boning secured to the inner surface of each of said breast cups vertically through the apex thereof, said breast cups being formed of generally oval panels of deeply shirred material with the shirring forming relatively deep folds running laterally across the breasts, said folds being loosely gathered in the vertical sense through the apices of the breast cups and being progressively more tightly gathered toward the sides thereof in the vertical sense in order to provide a generally oval outline for each breast cup, said shirring being 1 secured by generally vertical lines of stitching of plainly visible efiect to present vertical lines tending to counteract the visual efI'ect of the horizontal lines of shirring, and a band of laterally-stretchable elastic material of substantial width secured to the lower edge of said brassire and adapted to encircle the wearer beneath the breasts, said boning strips extending entirely across said band and being securely mounted thereon whereby said elastic band maintains said boning strips in upright position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 817,653 Meyer Apr. 10, 1906 1,210,863 Sobra Ian. 2, 1,844,888 Lorenz Feb. 9, 2,120,173 Cohen June 7, 2,134,630 White Oct. 25,

5 2,359,804 Struthers Oct. 10, 2,613,357 Christensen Oct. 14,

FOREIGN PATENTS 658,762 Germany Apr. 11,

10 OTHER REFERENCES 151. Copy available in Design Div. 

